Aftermath
by Andorian Ice Princess-AIP
Summary: He hadn't wanted to find out the truth the way he did; but when he did learn the truth it hit him harder than ever expected; leaving two friends to deal with the angry aftermath. Based on eppy 4.05 The Better Man'


**Title: Aftermath**

**Summary:** He hadn't wanted to find out the truth the way he did; but when he did learn the truth it hit him harder than ever expected; leaving two friends to deal with the angry aftermath. Based on eppy 4.05 The Better Man'

**Disclaimer: ** Sadly I own nothing from the awesomeness that is Flashpoint if I did Ed Lane would be all mine *Sigh* the rest? Well you should know by now lol

**Special A/N:** *sniff sniff* today is the LAST official day of filming for our beloved show. It's also my 40th FP story so a very bittersweet day for all of us (Alice included). But as much as we kinda protested posting today it is Wordy wEDnesEDay (yes its my standing FB joke) here is our offering and we hope you like it. I LOVED this eppy so much and was rewatching (lost count how many times I've seen this eppy lol) and Alice caught a small plot bunny and hopes you all like it as much as we did :D

**Warning: you might need a Kleenex or two**

_"Words in italics and double quotes – directly from the eppy."_

* * *

_Levodopa…parkinsons…levodopa…parkinsons…debilitating…incurable…life-altering…life-ending…best friend…dead._

Since nearly every single cop on active duty had been called in for the city-wide massive uniformed arrest detail; telling Sophie he had to leave at a rather ungodly hour that morning was actually plausible. What he didn't tell her is why he had only gotten a maybe half our solid rest at best; his mind racing all night, every second with the information he had gathered the night before. _Gathered? _Ed's mind mocks as his brain flashes images of the day before; hearing Wordy was late in the morning, watching his best friend lie right to his face, the tense meeting with SIU, his best friend and team mate calling him on a matter of trust between them and then him doing the nearly unthinkable – breaking into Wordy's locker.

_"Eddie…I had an appointment but I'm okay…everything's fine…I just need you to trust me."_

But he knew, the night before when his best friend uttered those words that something wasn't right; and that nagging doubt inside his mind dictated his somewhat rash actions. Breaking into Wordy's locker; invading his privacy. In that moment he wished he could turn back his own clock, begging for his suspicious ignorance to return, telling himself that this painful punch to the gut wasn't real and that his friend hadn't been diagnosed with a life-altering affliction.

_Parkinson's…Wordy's got…no this can't be…this hasta be a mistake…we were supposed to grow old together…watch our kids graduate from college…be grandfathers together…this….this is wrong…damn it Wordy…why didn't you tell me._

Thankfully he had avoided the boss, Sam and Spike; nervously pacing the men's locker room until his best friend arrives and then – confront him? He wasn't exactly known for his subtlety and his inner fear and agitation were threatening to take over his placid exterior. _Be calm…and just talk to him reasonably._

That was the plan. But as soon as Wordy enters and Ed spies him; that rash plan is rendered moot and intense inner emotion takes over; dictating his actions, much to his own personal horror and dismay. He sees Wordy looking and then finding the lock, his throat trying in vain to swallow the newly formed lump of emotion as he nears; the small bottle of pills suddenly feeling like a hundred pound weight in his hand as he finally confronts him.

_"Why didn't you tell me?"_

_"You broke into my locker?" _Wordy asks in anger; snatching the bottle of pills from Ed's grasp.

_"You think this is how I wanted to find out? We have known each other for twenty years…" _Ed blurts out, his mind and heart racing so fast he knows rash thought and reason; his earlier plan, would never come to fruition.

_"Doesn't give you the right."_

And there it was…the second invisible punch to the gut. There was so much that Ed knows he can reason back with, reply to…curse at, but instead he allows his mind to dwell on the fact that he feels more betrayal than sympathy starting to fester and instead of waiting for his brain, allows heated agitation to take over; making him fall back on the one shield he could always hide behind – professional protocol.

_"As your friend maybe not…as your team leader that's a hell of a different story. Why didn't you tell me?" _Ed inquires, his tone on edge at the start and then ending in torment as he falters back on emotion once more; his eyes begging his best friend to tell him this was a hoax…a joke at his expense…a mistake. Wordy doesn't…he can't have…Parkinson's. But fate wasn't to be kind…it was already set and this was the path they now would be forced to walk.

_"You were supposed to trust me," _Wordy looks at Ed in anguish, his eyes begging his best friend for a small reprieve so that he could explain in his own words. However, a fierce emotional tsunami washes over Ed, forcing him to turn on his heel and storm out of the room; his ears picking up Wordy's soft curse as he goes in search of his boss – his anger boiling.

With his mind spinning and his heart literally racing out of control; rash thought and action were quickly being replaced with frustrated thoughts. _How dare he keep this from me. I'm his best friend…known each other twenty years. Did that mean NOTHING? He asked me to trust him but he didn't trust me._

He spies Greg, and despite the professional chatter bombarding him from all sides on the morning of a very important police operation; he marches up to his boss with a stern "_we gotta talk_" demand; it was business and that was it.

_"Wordy's on medication…Levodopa do you know what that is?" _ Ed blurts out so fast he can hardly take a breath; his voice so thick with emotion he could barely manage the words; his brain and heart both teetering on the edge between utter rage and a complete emotional breakdown; his whole frame about to explode with untold grief.

_"He tell you this?"_

_"I broke into his locker."_

_"You broke into his locker?_

_"Wordy has Parkinsons."_

_"Yeah Eddie…I know." _And just like that – the hammer falls. Another invisible punch to the gut; and the day wasn't near to being over.

WHAT? And just like that his stomach slightly recoils as the invisible sledgehammer connects with his mid-section, a mere punch not sufficing this time; winding him for a few milliseconds while his brain tries to digest the second bit of bad news he's received in less than ten minutes. Another betrayal…first his best friend keeps life altering news from him and now his boss tells him…he knew and hadn't told him either. For a few more seconds his world slows to a halt, his eyes darting off and then back at Greg, his now sweaty palms tightening at his sides. _This is crap! _His mind yells. _He tells you and not me? DAMN YOU!_

_"He told you? When?" _Ed asks, his voice thick with surprise and rising anger.

_"A while ago," _Greg replies; hoping his calm reply would bring his team leaders sharp tone down to his level.

Resisting the temptation to once again storm off and go corner Wordy, demanding why he told his boss and not his best friend about his life altering affliction; Ed remains in place, his heart painfully beating, his brain not allowing his legs to comply with the silent request for him to leave. _Hear him out! _His mind begs in sorrow.

"He told you…" Ed mutters under his breath; his words lost on everyone else but Greg. "Damn it," he curses in frustration as he looks at Greg with a slightly narrowed gaze.

Greg knew in that moment that if looks could kill he'd be dead; shot right through the eyes with the expert kill shot of a trained sniper; and he was standing face to face with one of the best. But at the same time there was a scared vulnerability in his voice and his eyes – Ed Lane was scared and cornered – two things he hated more than anything. His expression was that of a scared boy asking his father for the explanation to bad news that was just dumped on him and he didn't know why or how. _"I broke into his locker…" _Greg's mind stings with Ed's guilt-laden words as he looks at his team lead in mild surprise. In truth he wasn't _that_ surprised; Ed Lane on a hunch was an unstoppable force, but this wasn't the way Wordy had wanted Ed to find out.

_'Boss you gotta promise me you won't tell the team, especially Ed.'_

_'Wordy, he's your team lead and your best friend…you know he ca…'_

_'Please. This is my…my life and I need to tell him and the team when I'm ready. I need you to trust me on this.'_

_'Okay. Okay Wordy this is your call. You just tell me what to do.'_

Ed's voice was thick with emotion, his brain furiously yelling at his tear ducts to keep the tears back or else! But being the skilled profiler he was, Greg also knows in that moment, any kind of word spoken in untruth; no matter the justification to buffer his TL's emotional state would be moot. So he replies with the only answer he can, his heart slowing to a dull thud as Ed looks at him with a mixture of betrayal and morbidity. And then in true Ed Lane fashion, pushed past the personal betrayal and launches right into technicalities.

_"Ed…we'll talk about this later."_

The only thing Greg could do at that moment was deflect the question until a more appropriate time and Ed knows that. But with his mind reeling and heart racing…his best friend…his boss – both had kept a terrible secret from him…a life altering affliction…a devastating secret, one that he had to stumble upon on his own. After that…anger took over, so much so that he started to direct those heated feelings toward his best friend and team mate, in front of the team, at nearly the expense of their job while on the job.

And as much as Ed had wanted to protest, there wasn't the chance; as soon as the teams broke apart to follow their perp, Sam and Spike raced for their trucks, getting into the driver's seat; Greg taking the third and not giving Ed a chance to drive – not in his frame of mind.

_"Look Eddie, I get the anger…you just found out your best friend is sick. It's a lot to process."_

Stop profiling me Greg, Ed's mind shouts in silent anguish. _Sick…Wordy is not sick…this…this isn't real; it's all a terrible nightmare that I'm gonna wake up from any second. _But the nightmare wasn't about to end anytime soon and reality was slamming into him full force every second; forcing him to watch images of the two of them for the past twenty years and laughing at his inability to push them away as fast as he wanted. However, that didn't excuse Greg's actions.

_"Why didn't you tell me?" _Ed asks, the hint of sorrow and tension still dripping from every word. Even Greg's attempt to explain his actions about keeping the secret only served to fuel Ed's tension; which once again trickled out into his decision in dictating Wordy's actions at the next stop and putting the whole team on edge. It wasn't until the takedown later that his heart finally wins out and Wordy's back being an integral part of team one; gun in hand.

But even as the case winds to a close Ed knows…knows his best friend and knows the day will end on a worse note than it did the night before; after tonight, nothing would ever be the same for them – ever…again. An announcement was coming and it was tearing him up inside. He can only watch with silent morose as his best friend flounders in front of Winnie's desk before they all reconvene in the locker room where the bomb is finally dropped; silence so thick following the announcement that for a few seconds everyone forgets to breathe – literally.

_"I was scared…sayin' it makes it real."_

Real…but it's not real! Ed's mind shouts in tormented silence as he looks at his best friend, his eyes already wet and his stomach actually painful; his world starting to blur. _This…this can't be happening…he's joking and any second he's gonna tell us this is all just a joke. _Please Wordy? Tell the team, Ed's mind begs in silence. Please…tell them you're gonna be okay. But there would be no pulling back from this one; no one liner offered in a glib comeback stating he was just pulling their legs for a bit of fun.

Greg had tried to soothe the teams burgeoning depression by saying the medication was keeping his symptoms at bay and could for years and for a few split seconds Ed's mind rejoices in triumph; but that elation is quickly deflated by Wordy's own verbal resignation, to which Ed can only stand silently in the corner and curse his very existence. In haste the team offers up deflections of perfection, Ed keeping silent, his hands fidgeting over his face, head, vest, belt until he couldn't take it any longer and had to speak up.

_"Wordy…we're still better…"_

_"Eddie…I'd go through any door with you. But none of us can do this job forever," Wordy sniffs, forcing Ed's eyes to water once more._

_"How am I supposed to make it in here every day withoutcha Wordy?"_

_"We always find a way through Eddie. That's the job…you're just gonna hafta do yours twice as good."_

And that was it…the usually emotionally guarded, stoic team leader was replaced with a very human Ed Lane; embracing his best friend, his eyes glistening and his entire frame about to break down. This isn't how it was supposed to end for them. Not like this. He then feels the rest of the team wanting to give Wordy a hug, forcing him to pull back, shaking his head and telling himself…nothing. That was it…the bomb had been dropped and there was no way to diffuse it now. Now it was the aftermath and that…that was what he was fearing the most.

_"You okay?" _Greg asks Ed a few moments after they both uttered their heartfelt verbal apologies to each other for their actions in this emotionally charged situation; acknowledging they were short a man and then Greg looking at Ed in concern; this would eat away at his team leader. The question was largely rhetorical as Greg knows Ed Lane will never be okay again; he hardly expected and answer but wasn't surprised by what he heard next.

_"Twenty years…" _is all Ed manages, earning a small _"I know_" and nod from Greg but after that…there were no more words. What else could be said? It wasn't like they could sit and brainstorm ways to make Wordy better…it wasn't up to them to recommend career paths; and it wasn't even in their power to offer to turn back time and suggest a different life course. It was done and now it was time to adjust and try to come to terms. But as much as Greg knows Ed will put on a brave face for the rest of the team from this day forward he does fear for his team leader's inner emotional wellbeing and it being a ticking time bomb. How can you watch someone you know and love deteriorate and ever come to terms with it? How can you get past the feelings of helplessness? Anger? Frustration? You can't. And as Greg watches Ed finally take his leave and knows…Ed Lane will never be completely whole again – that was his aftermath to deal with. In reality it was all of theirs.

XXXXXXXX

Not wanting to go home and get all angry and testy with his family for his inability to offer a permanent solution to his best friends affliction, Ed waits until he thinks all the team has left, quickly changes and then heads back into the weight room, picking up the gloves and starting to strike the bag with as much force as his adrenaline-depleted frame would allow.

_You were supposed to trust me…found out this way…trusted me…known each other twenty years…he told me Eddie…Wordy has Parkinson's…scared…its real…trust…_

And on it went, Ed's lips cursing so many things almost simultaneously with each forceful punch that landed in the middle of the heavy leather bag; his mind just yelling at him to get out every single drop of frustrated anger before he even thinks about going home. The next time he hits the bag so hard and then steps back, miscalculating the fact the bag's momentum was still going and growls angrily as the bag slams into his sweat-soaked side; forcing him to step back, once again cursing the inanimate objects very existence.

"AHHHHh!" Ed yells as he punches the bag so hard, his wrist connecting oddly that he quickly pulls back his stinging appendage, shaking his hand and muttering angrily before he looks up and sees Wordy watching in silence. "What!"

"What do you expect me to say, sorry?"

"You coulda told me first!" Ed insists as he turns back to the back and tries to punch it once more, his brain scolding him for trying and rewarding his stubborn efforts with another painful sting to the same wrist, forcing him to pull back; his eyes not daring to look up at his best friend still watching him intently.

"I wanted to tell you…."

"Yeah good job of that!"

"You didn't make it easy on me today!" Wordy argues back.

"I was doing my job," Ed argues back as he finally turns and glares at Wordy who dares to take a few steps closer to the superheated SRU team leader.

"Embarrassing me? Yeah good job there Ed!"

"You coulda saved yourself the grief by telling me first!"

"You forced my hand today!"

"Oh so you quitting today was my fault?" Ed retorts in anger. "Fine you wanna blame me for…"

"For me suddenly getting struck with a life altering disease? Yeah fine its Ed Lane's fault my life is now screwed up. IS THAT WHAT YOU WANTED TO HEAR?" Wordy finishes with a shout. "YOU'RE TO BLAME!"

Ed grits his teeth and feels his fists tighten; anger and rage boiling inside. Then without warning he sends a punch and lands it square on Wordy's jaw; both of them looking at the other in surprise. However, Wordy counters with a punch to Ed's jaw before both arms are in the air and the two are literally locked in a fruitless wrestling match – neither would prove to be winners when it was all said and done.

"YOU SHOULDA TOLD ME!"

"YOU SHOULDA TRUSTED ME!"

Both shout, pure heated emotion brimming over their normally rash minds and forcing raw humanity to completely take over. The two of them continue to tussle; both fighting each other and themselves for a title of world's biggest loser – literally.

"ENOUGH!" Wordy shouts, forcing the two of them to finally break apart and step back, lungs ragged, chests heaving, tempers still flaring and minds and hearts racing. The two of them stand fixed in a heated showdown for what seems like an eternity; cross expressions finally softening, tiny beads of sweat sliding down flushed skin, and two countenances finally cooling enough to express somewhat coherent sentences.

"Why Wordy? Why…didn't you just tell me?"

"I should have told you but…damn it Ed…I'm scared," Wordy finally admits, making Ed just shake his head but say nothing in reply. "I'm scared okay?"

"You promised," Ed mentions in a tone so soft it barely registered as a whisper; but the person on the receiving end heard it clear as day. "You remember…"

Wordy looks at his best friend in misery, his mind racing back to their first days as rookies and the promise they made to each other to be at the other's side no matter the area of law enforcement until the day they both retired – together. He offers Ed a defeated expression before he bows his head and utters his forced acknowledgement. "I know."

"You broke your part of the promise."

Ed's eyes water once more as he tries to pull the gloves off, Wordy stepping in to help but Ed pushing him back, fairly offering a grunt of displeasure.

"Fine…do it yourself," Wordy tosses up his hands and then steps back a few feet, turning his back to Ed and taking a deep breath. "You know what I thought about last night? How I might never be able to hold my granddaughter with steady hands…that's what I think about now," he utters, his voice thickly laden with miserable torment that a tear instantly escapes Ed's watery sapphires, running down his flushed face just as Wordy turns to witness the almost out of character display of emotion on his best friends face. "Damn it Ed," Wordy softly curses in misery.

Ed quickly wipes his eyes and once again shakes his head, willing the onslaught of bad news to stop and Wordy to tell him it was a cruel joke meant to make Ed mad for a few hours and then that was it – life would be back to normal. Ed stands before Wordy – utterly speechless, his mind racing so fast but his lips unable to actually find words to put together to state audibly.

"Wordy…you…" Ed finally tries before once again biting back emotion and gritting his teeth at his own inability to keep his emotions in check. "You promised," is all he can manage.

"I know…and I broke it. Bad friend right?" Wordy replies with a heavy sigh. "I'm scared."

"Me too," Ed admits with a small nod, his fingers tight and actually hurting from the balled fists he's been holding for what seems like forever. "Just um…just not fair."

"I know. I keep looking at the girls and Ed…I'm scared. I mean I remember us talking about…"

"Don't."

"I have to," Wordy insists, knowing his best friend's affinity for not wanting to talk out important emotionally-charged matters.

"Okay," Ed merely replies, his brain tired of fighting his heart and finally conceding.

"I feel like I failed them. I remember when I asked Shelly to marry me and…damn it Ed I thought I was offering her a better life. But now…she'll be stuck with…"

"No…don't say it."

"An invalid. I can't be that man Ed…I can't do that to her…to the girls."

"Wordy don't okay…"

"Ed, I…"

"DON'T!"

"I HAVE TO!" Wordy shouts back as tempers once again start to flare up. "I get talking's not your thing but it's mine."

"It wasn't supposed to be you!" Ed grumbles back, shaking his head at the silliness of his words; as if the debilitating disease specifically targeted one of the city's finest to show them just how human and fragile they all really were.

"Oh like I asked for this?"

"No!"

"My family is counting on me to be the one they turn to in times of…in everything; their strength you know? What happens when I can't give that back? This thing…inside me…slowly eating away…sure meds will help keep the symptoms at bay for a few years but then what. Will I attend my girl's graduation in a wheelchair? What kind of strong pillar will she be proud of?"

"Wordy…"

"The day the doctor told me…you know what I told him Ed? He was a liar and this was a joke set up by the team to just shake me up a little. After I realized arguing with him was pointless I went home and just stared at the girls and at Shelly and then I started to make up lies. LIES Ed! I've never lied to any of them…or you in my life," his voice rises and falls with his emotional charge. "For the first few nights I stayed up pacing…telling myself this wasn't real; that I would be okay and am not gonna slowly start to wither away to a helpless invalid."

"No…Wordy…"

"I've tried to reason his through and I can't okay! I can't!" Wordy huffs in anger. "I hate feeling helpless and yet…I am. I can't stop this…sure I can slow it down but I can't fix it. I'm scared now of the future; a future I once held with promise and hope. That's gone Ed! GONE! I'm not gonna slowly deteriorate and you know it…if friggin sucks! Ed…I've never been this scared…in my whole life," his voice finally dies out with a soft whisper.

With each word, Ed finally gives in and lets his eyes water and the tears just silently fall down his face; his arms not even having the will or the strength to lift and wipe them away to make space for fresh ones.

"What shape will I be in for our twenty-fifth wedding anniversary? To walk my babies down the aisle? On my own two feet? To say to the minister I give them away in a clear firm voice? To stand beside you at our retirement?"

Ed listens to Wordy as he rattles off heated statements and unanswerable questions, each word forcing his heart to shatter and his brain to keep producing tears. _Damn it! _He silently curses over and over; other heated words not registering. But what could he say? Neither of them had the answers; all he could do was stand uselessly in place and be a morose sounding board for his best friend in his darkest hour.

"I don't know what to do," Ed finally manages, garnering a soft smirk from Wordy before another frown sets in. "I'm sorry."

"And I know that frustrates you; always has not being able to be the one in complete control. I shoulda told you right from the start but…Ed I remember our promise and when I thought about telling you I thought about all the things we have done in the past twenty years and the things we said we still wanted to do twenty years from now and won't be able because of me…I don't even know what five years from now will bring. I know I let you down but…"

"No," Ed quickly interrupts with a firm shake of his head. "No you didn't. Okay? You didn't. I um…I don't react well to change or surprises."

"Trust me I know," Wordy lightly grunts as he rubs his still tender jaw. "You know that hurt."

"I know," Ed frowns as he rubs his jaw; the two of them walking away with matching souviners. "Sorry about that too. Wordy I'm sorry. I do trust you…I trust you with…with my life," Ed manages as his voice cracks again. "You've been my best friend and right hand for as long as I have known you and now…"

"You won't be alone."

"You're leaving," Ed states simply.

"I am because you trust me with your life. What happens when that day comes and it's your life in my hands. I'm looking through my scope and suddenly a tremor and shake and the bullet that was meant for someone else…hits you instead. And you die? Ed my life would be over if that ever happened. And I can't let it."

"Switch roles with Spike," Ed offers offhandedly.

"I can barely text," Wordy softly smirks. "I looked at all the angles, okay? I did…you think I wanted this?"

"No," Ed replies in a somber tone. "I know you didn't…I know. I just…"

"Hate to feel helpless. See I know you too."

"I know you do," Ed agrees slowly. "Just um…just tell me what to do okay? Anything…just tell me. Wordy…tell me," Ed begs helplessly.

"Damn Ed I don't even know myself. I thought it was just stress until the doctor confirmed and now…now I spend every night online reading up on symptoms, stages, herbal remedies…anything to slow this damn thing down when I should be worrying about reading to my kids and learning new sex moves. Then I go and watch my girls, hold them…play with them. Hold Shelly…anything that will help me deal with this before it's too late and I can't."

"And you being fed a my bruised ego isn't helping."

"Like I said…I know you," Wordy smirks as he playfully punches Ed's arm, making Ed's face finally soften. "Scary right?"

"Yeah."

"I don't blame you for anything you did…I helped you make those decisions."

"Still shoulda trusted you."

"Maybe…or maybe that was just my scared way of pushing back and not having to deal with it until…"

"Yeah but if I didn't you'd still be here – tomorrow."

"One of these days I woulda snapped and the longer it goes on…I also got tired of lying to you all."

"Shelly knows right?"

"Yeah. She's scared to. The um…the girls don't know yet. We're waiting until things get really bad before um…Ed I can't do this…I can't."

"I'll help with whatever you need okay? A bike tune-up…ballet run…you name it okay? Just um…Wordy I don't know what to do either okay? I don't…breaking into your locker was a reflex and then…overreacting…that's all I know. Dealing with this…whatever you need okay? I'm there Wordy…whatever you need. Just tell me…tell me what to do."

"I just need you to…damn Ed I don't even know myself," Wordy confesses heavily. "I just need to know no matter what that you…that you'll always be at my side…"

"I will…I will…I give you my word on that," Ed sniffs as he heavily embraces Wordy for the second time in a couple of hours; the two of them just holding each other in a friendly embrace, tears starting to fall once more; before both of them finally break apart and look at each other with anguished expressions.

"Whatever you need…no matter the time or…anything. Okay?"

"Copy…that," Wordy slightly smirks and Ed's lips twitch into a small smile. "So…we good?"

"Yeah," Ed swallows and nods at the same time. "We're um…we're good. And tomorrow? What happens tomorrow?"

"I find a new job and you tell me all about the new recruits that won't measure up and we um…"

"Wordy…"

"Ed…this is it. I honestly don't know. But tomorrow we'll figure it out together okay?"

"Right. Okay so…I guess it's time to head home."

The two of them stand facing each other with anguished expressions; nothing further to say at the moment. Adrenaline was all but spent, anger unleashed and frustration dealt with; hard feelings put to rest. The fearful future was still hanging out there but that wasn't going to be solved one night with a few heated words, it would be an ongoing battle with the war staring the very next day. All they could do was promise to be true to each other for as long as humanly possible.

"Walk ya out?"

"Just let me get rid of these gloves or else the boss will be dockin' me pay."

"You ever tell him about that broken bicycle wheel?"

"No and neither are you."

"Ha figured as much," Wordy smirks as he pats Ed on the back, the two of them walking out of the quiet room, Ed flipping off the lights; a silent, watchful figure emerging from the shadows; having witnessed it all.

Greg hears the friendly banter and light laughter and smiles in spite of the fact that his heart too was tugging at the emotionally devastating aftermath Wordy's news had left in its wake. The laughter was a pleasant façade but a façade nonetheless. Nothing would be the same from now on; their lives forever altered, futures changed. But in the end there would be one thing that would remain forever between them no matter what – the bonds of friendship, that nothing – disease or death – would ever be able to break.

**THE END!**

* * *

**A/N:** okay sorry if you all teared up a bit as it was one of the hardest to write so far only b/c we have parkinson's in our family and it was at times hard to separate RL from fandom lol dang eh? But I hope you all liked this and found it a somewhat good tribute to this eppy. Please do review before you go and thanks so much!


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